Tom's acting in Gemini

[redeem147]

If anyone tries to tell me Mr. Welling can't act, I'm showing them this episode. He did a very subtle job of not quite being Clark. I knew something was up, because he was a bit 'off' (though I thought he might be Brainiac, until the computer code part). The flying was an obvious giveaway, but I thought something was up from the getgo.

Bizarro and Dark Lana. Now there's an interesting combination.

I'm lucky I saw the episode. I thought we were in reruns until the new year. I was flipping just before 9pm and found it from a western feed. Go digital box!

[aqgalaxy]

Their was indeed more Chemistry between Lana and Bizarro...

But it freaks me out that Lana cheated on Clark with his duplicate.

[biggkoz]

That wasnt tom that was bizarro tom.

[redeem147]

That wasnt tom that was bizarro tom.

Are you implying Bizarro Tom is a better actor?

[theotherJane]

He did a good job, but honestly, I thought that AM and AA were better. I enjoyed their acting the most.

[chlark fan]

Yeah, I was blown away by Tom's acting in Gemini. He didn't act like Clark OR Bizarro but subtly melded them together to be 'Bizarro acting like Clark'. Brilliant!

[curiosity]

Originally posted by redeem147
If anyone tries to tell me Mr. Welling can't act, I'm showing them this episode. He did a very subtle job of not quite being Clark. I knew something was up, because he was a bit 'off' (though I thought he might be Brainiac, until the computer code part). The flying was an obvious giveaway, but I thought something was up from the getgo.

Bizarro and Dark Lana. Now there's an interesting combination.

I'm lucky I saw the episode. I thought we were in reruns until the new year. I was flipping just before 9pm and found it from a western feed. Go digital box!

I did too. I thought he was really Brainiac a couple of times, so when he was really Bizarro in the end, it kinda made sense. And he was very subtle with the changing of expression, so you could tell something was slightly off. He was just enough like Clark, and just enough not like Clark.

Although, when he saved Chloe that threw me for a minute, and the real Clark isn't that sappy with Lana anymore.:p

[Twitch]

Originally posted by chlark fan
Yeah, I was blown away by Tom's acting in Gemini. He didn't act like Clark OR Bizarro but subtly melded them together to be 'Bizarro acting like Clark'. Brilliant!
Okay you worded that perfectly, exactly how I saw it, Tom did such a great job!

[curiosity]

Originally posted by theotherJane
He did a good job, but honestly, I thought that AM and AA were better. I enjoyed their acting the most.

Not me. I'm a Clark fan all the way. I thought they spent too much time on Chloe/Jimmy, and not enough on Clark.

Even though he was frozen, I think they could have revealed that after half the episode and spent time with the "help Clark" plot.

I'm not sure how he's getting out, sinse no one knows he's there. Maybe Chloe will get Lionel and save Clark again, or something. Or they'll come up with something new and he'll manage to escape like the phantom zone.

[Kal26]

Originally posted by redeem147
If anyone tries to tell me Mr. Welling can't act, I'm showing them this episode. He did a very subtle job of not quite being Clark. I knew something was up, because he was a bit 'off' (though I thought he might be Brainiac, until the computer code part). The flying was an obvious giveaway, but I thought something was up from the getgo.

Bizarro and Dark Lana. Now there's an interesting combination.

I'm lucky I saw the episode. I thought we were in reruns until the new year. I was flipping just before 9pm and found it from a western feed. Go digital box!

Couldn't agree more. Looking back on the episode, he gave us tell tale signs throughout. They were just very subtle. One thing was the sh#@ eating grin he kept giving.

[SVfan26]

If you look back at the episode, you can probly discern that its Bizarro, or at least a mentally-changed Clark, when he stops to listen for Chloe and the bomb.

When he finally hears the bomb's countdown, he doesn't react at all emotionally. When Clark is in the same situation, you see this "real worried" look come over his face. Tonight, during that scene, there was absolutely no show of emotion at all.

And the jog from the landing point to the elevator was extremely lackadaisical looking. As if "ho hum, what a bore".

Did notice the look of slight surprise at seeing Chloe/Jimmy liplocking though. Guess you can't fault that, if he has Clark's memories, he expects these two to be feuding and what with the Karimmy angle and all.

----------------------------------------------------------------

Another big giveaway was his first appearance, towards the end of the scene.

He was all against Lana being "dark" and vindictive before he disappeared, but now all of a sudden he likes this side of her and wants to help?? Hmmmm....

[AndiGirl]

He did an amazing job! From the beginning of the episode I could tell he was just....off. He slowly lets you see through the episode and his actions that he's infact Bizarro. I'm sure most of us new before his face did that freaky thing, that it wasnt Clark.

So nice job for Tom! He definitely brought his A game, and I think Tom just seems to do an amazing job playing the semi-bad boy!

[Lexgirl33]

For some reason his acting seemed flat. I need to watch the episode again to make sure.

[BadToad]

He was awesome. Very subtle. Just enough to be off, but not too much to be obvious. Masterful job. The man is good. :)

[Mello Penelo]

Originally posted by redeem147
If anyone tries to tell me Mr. Welling can't act, I'm showing them this episode. He did a very subtle job of not quite being Clark.

That's because his acting is so sub-par, no one can distinguish between him being Clark, Kal, Kal-El, Lionel or Bizzaro. It's all the same. There's a term for that. I believe it's called wooden.

[chantal]

Originally posted by SVfan26

Did notice the look of slight surprise at seeing Chloe/Jimmy liplocking though. Guess you can't fault that, if he has Clark's memories, he expects these two to be feuding and what with the Karimmy angle and all.


But Bizarro has been gone since the 1st episode. He wouldn't have any memories of Kara, Lana's return, Chloe/Jimmy break up, return of Lionel, etc., because that happened after MM got rid of him. Unless he is somehow still in contact with Clark's brain. Or if he had something to do with Clark being imprisoned.

[hookem91]

mello penelo it seems you really dislike this show...so why do you watch it?

[theotherJane]

Originally posted by Mello Penelo
That's because his acting is so sub-par, no one can distinguish between him being Clark, Kal, Kal-El, Lionel or Bizzaro. It's all the same. There's a term for that. I believe it's called wooden.

:lol:
Debbie Downer, much?

[Lexgirl33]

:lol:

The only time his acting really stood out..Transference and Splinter. Hes not a bad actor at all. I think I am losing my memory when it comes to SV :lol:

[Mello Penelo]

Originally posted by theotherJane
:lol:
Debbie Downer, much?

Reality Rebbecca.

[BadToad]

That's because his acting is so sub-par, no one can distinguish between him being Clark, Kal, Kal-El, Lionel or Bizzaro. It's all the same. There's a term for that. I believe it's called wooden.

No, YOU can't distinguish a difference. Obviously other people on this thread can and do. You can't. Your problem. Not mine. I thought he was great.

[theotherJane]

Originally posted by BadToad
No, YOU can't distinguish a difference. Obviously other people on this thread can and do. You can't. Your problem. Not mine. I thought he was great.

How is that her problem exactly? If you ask me, it's simply a matter of opinion.
She thinks he didn't do a great job, other people do. Simple as that.

[chlark fan]

someone should start a poll

[quietone]

I thought TW turned in one of his best performances in this episode

[Mello Penelo]

Originally posted by BadToad
No, YOU can't distinguish a difference. Obviously other people on this thread can and do. You can't. Your problem. Not mine. I thought he was great.

MOD EDIT

[chlark fan]

Originally posted by Mello Penelo
MOD EDIT


You're entitled to your own opinion, but that's just an outright assumption

[myankskent]

Originally posted by Lexgirl33
:lol:

The only time his acting really stood out..Transference and Splinter.


And Labyrinth. I liked him in Labyrinth because there wasn't any kryptonite involved or villain that he had to portray. It's these episodes when Welling can really show off what he has, IMO. There's only so much he can do with loft scenes where he stares into Lana's eyes for what seems like forever. Given the material that TW is given, and let's face it, a nine year old might be able to write better material than some of the slop these writers come up with, I'd say that he does an amazing job. Same with the rest of the cast, IMO.

[Lexgirl33]

True true..only so much he can do. If I always stared into Lana's eyes Id go gahgah too :lol: No I agree with you about the writing aspect of it. I dont remember Labyrinth.

[chlark fan]

I think Tom, Allison, Annette, John and Michael are some of the best actors in Hollywood.

[BadToad]

MOD EDIT

If you say so. I have no idea why you even bother :rolleyes:

Just try and keep your opinion as Your Own. Saying "no one" is incorrect, obviously, going by this thread and in other forums, and its dismissive of other posters and their opinions and impressions.

[Chlarker2008]

for me, I didn't even see him fly, I thought he jumped. But, when I was talking to my friend Wendy about it she said that he flew! I already knew it wasn't Clark because something was just so different about him, like the way he talked.

[Mello Penelo]

Originally posted by BadToad
If you say so. I have no idea why you even bother :rolleyes:

Just try and keep your opinion as Your Own. Saying "no one" is incorrect, obviously, going by this thread and in other forums, and its dismissive of other posters and their opinions and impressions.

What you're really saying is you're right and I'm wrong, am I right?

[BadToad]

What you're really saying is you're right and I'm wrong, am I right?

No, what I'm really saying is that be saying that "no one" call tell the difference, you dismiss and discount anyone that feels differently, and decide that you are somehow in some position to speak for anyone but yourself and your own opinion of an actor.

If you had said "I" can't tell the difference, so be it.

Sorry, but I'm not "no one", and neither is anyone on this thread who disagrees with your opinion.

[Mello Penelo]

But when you say, "No, YOU can't tell the difference," aren't you forcing your opinion on me?

MOD EDIT

[BadToad]

What a waste of time.

Anyway, I thought he did a great job! And I'm so glad that I'm not wasting hours of my life watching and commenting on a show I find so horrible, starring an actor I think sucks. Because that would truly be a waste of time.

[Mello Penelo]

Originally posted by BadToad
What a waste of time.

Anyway, I thought he did a great job! And I'm so glad that I'm not wasting hours of my life watching and commenting on a show I find so horrible, starring an actor I think sucks. Because that would truly be a waste of time.

Yeah, because you don't think I should have that opinion and you're mad you can't change it.

Anyway, tonight was a real disappointment. I come home and have to choke my way through another episode of blown potential that is Smallville just to find out there was no Scrubs on tonight!

[chlark fan]

Originally posted by Mello Penelo
Yeah, because you don't think I should have that opinion and you're mad you can't change it.

Anyway, tonight was a real disappointment. I come home and have to choke my way through another episode of blown potential that is Smallville just to find out there was no Scrubs on tonight!

We're all well aware of your plentiful bounty of opinions, now why don't you move along to a "Scrubs" message board.

[Supes4Ever]

We all just need to learn to ignore the postings of users like "Mello" unless they bring up a legit argument.

I have started to do that when posters use comments like "another episode with so much potential but another massive mistake in the history of the show," or "the writers are absolute morons," and don't back it up with specific examples.

These are posters that I call "Directors in Denial," as in they always think they can do a better job then the people hired to write and direct a show, so they do nothing but bash it when it doesn't ever reach their opinion of success (which the show never will with posters like that).

My roommate is like that, so I just tell him to go try and get a job writing in television, so he can finally see the television he thinks he "deserves" to see.

[Indira Kal]

Originally posted by theotherJane
He did a good job, but honestly, I thought that AM and AA were better. I enjoyed their acting the most.

i agree with you!

btw... i LOVEEEE your avatar. i've been cheating on smallville by having an affair with moonlight. what can i say??? an completely addicted!

[ClareKent]

I found Tom's acting quite diferent, but I really don't know if I liked it or not, just different. The one's I did enjoy were Michael's and Erica's, they did a great job with all those emotional scenes.

[ma200]

Given the material that TW is given, and let's face it, a nine year old might be able to write better material than some of the slop these writers come up with

The writing can be terrible at times but it's an actor's job to rise above the material. TW is a terrible actor. He's not convincing and he lacks conviction.

[ginnyfan]

At first I felt a little iffy about it. He was doing some weird eyebrow acting. But now that I know it was Bizarro... we were watching Bizarro ACT like Clark so... it makes sense that he wouldn't get it completely right. LOL!

[chlark fan]

I think Tom does a fantastic job...he started out slow but over the years I believe he's turned into one of the finest actors out there. I notice he can depict whatever emotion Clark is feeling w/ a subtle twitch of a facial muscle or a change in his eyes...he's remarkable.

KK on the other hand always seems like she's trying too hard IMO. It's Like she's in a bad high school play, I can tell she's simply "acting".

[Titan27]

Hey Mello Penelo why do you dislike Tom Welling...very strongly. I have been on a few other of Gemini's threads and in every one of those; you just rip TW's acting. Seriously some of the episodes he does a great job of acting; usually the ones where Clark is "forced" to be the center of the episode's story. A rarity from the writers for this show which like to focus on relationships more than Clark Kent but the great examples already mentioned are Transference, Splinter and Labyrinth. There are others I am sure that other posters could point out. But I am too tired to think about every episode.

Transference - TW did a great job acting as Lionel and discovering Clark's abilities and interacting with Annette O'Toole and John Schneider.

Splinter - He also did a great job acting like an individual under the effects of a drug...(Silver Kryptonite drug) but none the less showing his paranoia; the resolve to beat the $h!t out of Lex; and kill Lana, then after M. Fine's intervention change promptly to remorse and sadness for his actions.

Labyrinth - I am sure you saw the episode; playing someone who believes they are sane; and widely considered insane, and his acting when he was having the "surgery" performed on him, while he recollects on what MM says to him; then TW shows strength and fights back.

Also TW did a great job with the episode "Vengeance" showing a "hero" who tosses all their morals/rules out of the way to get results but is forced to re-evaluate them self by the end of the episode. Right after "Reckoning" which almost everyone considers the best Smallville episode; which I personally loath; was a great combination of sadness then anger; and revenge upon the world. I especially remember the ending for "Vengeance" the most since it's the only episode where I got "misty" eyes. Not for TW's acting I will admit but for the John Schneider video playing in the background waving goodbye. Overall he is a decent TV actor; there isn't going to be a Tom Hanks or Denzel Washington on a CW TV show.

BTW - Your avatar is the most awkward/funniest thing I have seen. You got TW at a moment making a weird face; not surprising since we all know you are not a fan from the sound of it; with Lana pregnant and the mad scientist Muppet at the end. Very nicely combined to get your point across.

[Timester]

TW did his job on this episode pretty well. Why? The fact that many people figgured that something was off with Clark is the confirmation. He was way less emotional than the usual.

[jack1487]

Originally posted by myankskent
And Labyrinth. I liked him in Labyrinth because there wasn't any kryptonite involved or villain that he had to portray. It's these episodes when Welling can really show off what he has, IMO. There's only so much he can do with loft scenes where he stares into Lana's eyes for what seems like forever. Given the material that TW is given, and let's face it, a nine year old might be able to write better material than some of the slop these writers come up with, I'd say that he does an amazing job. Same with the rest of the cast, IMO.


I have to agree with you those were very good shows. I like how he treated this episode tonight, you got the idea that something was not quite right but could not put your finger on it until the end. TW did an outstanding job, he has become a very good actor. One thing to remember a few (well a lot of years ago) people were saying the same thing about another young TV actor, of course we all know him now as Tom Hanks. So give the guy a break and let him continue to learn his job...


Take Care and Have A Happy Holiday,

Jack :)

[Mello Penelo]

Originally posted by ma200
TW is a terrible actor. He's not convincing and he lacks conviction.

Aye.



Originally posted by Titan27
Hey Mello Penelo why do you dislike Tom Welling...very strongly.

We'll start with the not-so-bads. He depends too much on his looks to get him parts and not enough his acting. Which a lot of actors and actresses do, but these in question should depend on more than their good looks. Kirsten Dunst, anyone? Then there are the ugly who are amazing, like Robin Williams and Lili Tomlin.

Now, on to the more grievous (for me). Tom Welling plays nothing but emo roles. The exception to that is The Fog, but that movie was so awesomely bad, not just because the script was bad, but because Tom's role was so out of place for him, he didn't know how to play a confident guy. In Smallville and the Dozen movies, all he does is whine.

In the Dozen movies, he plays an emo high school kid who can't accept his family moved. He didn't have a choice in the matter, but all he did was whine about missing his girlfriend and being a geek at his new school. Then again, I'll cut him just a slight bit of slack, because working next to Hilary Duff makes everyone look like DeNiro.

In Smallville, his acting fits in perfectly with the way Al/Miles are raping the persona of Clark Kent. He's whiny, unmotivated and selfish. Because Clark is written to be emo as hell, Tom Welling fits the role perfectly, but that doesn't make him a good actor. That qualifies him as wooden. Not to mention he can't distinguish himself when he plays bad.

If I had only seen Tom's acting and not the story in Red, Transference and Bizzaro, you'd think they were all the same bad guy. He has no way to distinguish the roles.


Originally posted by Titan27
Overall he is a decent TV actor; there isn't going to be a Tom Hanks or Denzel Washington on a CW TV show.

We're not looking for a Tom Hanks or a Denzel Washington. No one on the show will become a Tom Hanks or a Denzel Washington. Not even Rosenbaum or Mack. They're pretty decent and will have a modicum of success in Hollywood, but will never be A-listers. They'll end up like John Schneider, who after Dukes of Hazzard did TV movies like Night of The Twisters in relative obscurity until Smallville. Pretty decent actor, not enough roles. Same thing with Dean Cain. It's a "where are they now" kind of thing. Schneider was pretty decent in Annie Get Your Gun, too.

John Glover doesn't even have much exposure in Hollywood. He's done a few films which are good, but he's more of a Broadway actor, which is a very different acting style. It translates decently on the screen, but after seeing him in The Producers, he blew me away as so much more than an average Hollywood actor. His true depth and projection cannot be conveyed on a camera.

Anyway, back on the subject, TW just needs to regrow his blond ponytail, go back to Abercrombie ads and be thankful he's bringing home a paycheck. Smile for the camera.

[InLove_with_Chloe]

Originally posted by Mello Penelo
In Smallville, his acting fits in perfectly with the way Al/Miles are raping the persona of Clark Kent. He's whiny, unmotivated and selfish. Because Clark is written to be emo as hell, Tom Welling fits the role perfectly, but that doesn't make him a good actor. That qualifies him as wooden. Not to mention he can't distinguish himself when he plays bad.

If I had only seen Tom's acting and not the story in Red, Transference and Bizzaro, you'd think they were all the same bad guy. He has no way to distinguish the roles.

Very fine analysis. I agree.

[Dark_Superman]

So, i went through most of these posts (skipping nearly ALL of the stuff on his acting as i thought it was good) and I also thought something was up, and I noticed all these things that have been mentioned that it might be Bizarro... but did anyone notice the hair? it was more bizarro then clark... lol. thats just me lol

[chlark fan]

Originally posted by Mello Penelo
Aye.




We'll start with the not-so-bads. He depends too much on his looks to get him parts and not enough his acting. Which a lot of actors and actresses do, but these in question should depend on more than their good looks. Kirsten Dunst, anyone? Then there are the ugly who are amazing, like Robin Williams and Lili Tomlin.

Now, on to the more grievous (for me). Tom Welling plays nothing but emo roles. The exception to that is The Fog, but that movie was so awesomely bad, not just because the script was bad, but because Tom's role was so out of place for him, he didn't know how to play a confident guy. In Smallville and the Dozen movies, all he does is whine.

In the Dozen movies, he plays an emo high school kid who can't accept his family moved. He didn't have a choice in the matter, but all he did was whine about missing his girlfriend and being a geek at his new school. Then again, I'll cut him just a slight bit of slack, because working next to Hilary Duff makes everyone look like DeNiro.

In Smallville, his acting fits in perfectly with the way Al/Miles are raping the persona of Clark Kent. He's whiny, unmotivated and selfish. Because Clark is written to be emo as hell, Tom Welling fits the role perfectly, but that doesn't make him a good actor. That qualifies him as wooden. Not to mention he can't distinguish himself when he plays bad.

If I had only seen Tom's acting and not the story in Red, Transference and Bizzaro, you'd think they were all the same bad guy. He has no way to distinguish the roles.



We're not looking for a Tom Hanks or a Denzel Washington. No one on the show will become a Tom Hanks or a Denzel Washington. Not even Rosenbaum or Mack. They're pretty decent and will have a modicum of success in Hollywood, but will never be A-listers. They'll end up like John Schneider, who after Dukes of Hazzard did TV movies like Night of The Twisters in relative obscurity until Smallville. Pretty decent actor, not enough roles. Same thing with Dean Cain. It's a "where are they now" kind of thing. Schneider was pretty decent in Annie Get Your Gun, too.

John Glover doesn't even have much exposure in Hollywood. He's done a few films which are good, but he's more of a Broadway actor, which is a very different acting style. It translates decently on the screen, but after seeing him in The Producers, he blew me away as so much more than an average Hollywood actor. His true depth and projection cannot be conveyed on a camera.

Anyway, back on the subject, TW just needs to regrow his blond ponytail, go back to Abercrombie ads and be thankful he's bringing home a paycheck. Smile for the camera.



Would it kill you to throw in a few 'IMO's in there somewhere? Afterall, your statements are all conjecture and not fact, IMO

[TOMophilus]

Look, people, you really should ignore trolls whose only purpose in message board life is to express their obsessive hatred of some particular actor...

[chlark fan]

We could ignore them...or we could say what we believe and hopefully teach them a lesson or two about tact.

[skully]

I thought TW did a brilliant job. I agree with all posters who said he pulled of the subtlety of just not quite being Clark. I felt throughout the episode "what happened to Clark at the FoS?" until he flew up the stair well to get to the right level to save Chloe and Jimmy. Then I thought "this is definitely not Clark", could it be Bizarro?

[Theshadow129x]

Tom Welling hasnt had a good episode since Splinter plain and simple. he isnt moving me on his emotional or bad roles anymore.

[Mello Penelo]

Originally posted by chlark fan
Would it kill you to throw in a few 'IMO's in there somewhere? Afterall, your statements are all conjecture and not fact, IMO

That's the reason I made the post. The whole damn thing is my opinion. If I said you're required to agree with me, that's something different entirely.


Originally posted by chlark fan
We could ignore them...or we could say what we believe and hopefully teach them a lesson or two about tact.

And I don't have to have tact. You make me listen to your opinion, so here's mine.

[HowardFilms]

Yeah, he did great. I thought it was him just being a little off, or AlMiles teasing us with "well, we could make Clark like Superman...oh wait, never mind..." which I'm kinda glad I was only casually watching, because the Bizarro face was an awesome surprise at the end.

The flying also didn't throw me off because in the director's cut, it said it was a super jump, so I thought it was just another "well it looked like flight but it wasn't and we'll sit around and argue over what it was for a few weeks." Guess not.

[Titan27]

OK Mello Penelo. You make some very fine points. But I never saw any of the "Dozen" movies or The Fog remake because I knew ahead of time they were going to suck and didn't want to waste my time. You seem to follow his career a lot more than I do. I just watch him on Smallville; and base his acting skills on that.

Just remember in the comics Clark was already training himself w/ Jor-El to become Superman at this time of his life. (Right after high school). Same with the Superman movies so they are going to have to drag on his character with story lines what will not bring out a person's best acting ability. How can anyone be considered a good actor when they are playing "Superman" who is an iconic American fiction hero especially when he still lives on a farm as an "organic" farmer. The writers also are making Clark's emotions way too important to his character. In all past Superman media his only important emotions shown frequently was love, courage, and the ability to forgive(not murder) sadness wasn't very prominent but as you point out comes up frequently on this show.

I forgot which character made fun of Clark for being an "organic farmer" earlier this season; but I laughed for 5 minutes. One of the funniest lines in the series by far.

[Mello Penelo]

Originally posted by Titan27
Just remember in the comics Clark was already training himself w/ Jor-El to become Superman at this time of his life. (Right after high school).

Sorry, but in the comics, right after high school he travels the world, ridding injustice where he finds it sans the suit. He also gets a college degree on Met U's international program. He doesn't go to the Fortress of Solitude and have all of Krypton's knowledge downloaded into his brain as a pitiful excuse for "training."

Anyway, it's not that I follow his career closely, it's just I went to see the Dozen movies because I like Steve Martin. He's an amazing actor. I saw The Fog on a really, REALLY bad date. All you have to do is watch him to know.

And don't defend TW's poor acting by saying the show has bad writing. Both are the case, but are exclusive of one another.

[FiReFTW]

Originally posted by Mello Penelo

Then there are the ugly who are amazing, like Robin Williams





http://images.eonline.com/eol_images/Profiles/20061003/244.williams.robin.100206.jpg


ok...

I wonder if your dad is as good looking as Robin is at his age ..

Btw care too post your picture?

[chlark fan]

Originally posted by FiReFTW
http://images.eonline.com/eol_images/Profiles/20061003/244.williams.robin.100206.jpg


ok...

I wonder if your dad is as good looking as Robin is at his age ..

Btw care too post your picture?


*sarcasm* Mello Penelo is just giving her damn opinion and she does not have to have tact. */sarcasm*

[hansioux]

Originally posted by Mello Penelo
Aye.

If I had only seen Tom's acting and not the story in Red, Transference and Bizzaro, you'd think they were all the same bad guy. He has no way to distinguish the roles.


The script given to you has a lot to do with how much you can do with your craft.

From your original post, it sounded like you have more issues with the type of character Tom is type casted into, instead of his actual acting skills.

When John Glover guest starred and played a bad guy in DS9, he wasn't half as captivating as he is as Lionel. Because it was not a very well written DS9 script. Had he gotten the role as someone else, perhaps Dukat (which I think Glover is the only other guy who can pull that character off), then he would have a great range of avenues to show off his craft.

I am not saying Smallville only have good actors. There were plenty of guest stars that made me cringe. The last couple of episodes when Martha showed up, it was so aweful I thought Lex stepped into reality and cloned Annette O'Toole.

Tom and even AM wasn't all that great in the first season. But, at season 7, Tom is doing pretty well.

Take Martha for example, the problem with Smallville is the carelessness of the writers and the fan-tears soaked scripts. Martha was a great character and Annette did a great job with her for a couple of seasons, then they had the whole Martha and Lionel deal. Which was not only unnecessary, it wrote the character into a hole.

Same thing with the Lana character. Any chance of redeeming her was ruined when she got with Lex (before ZOD). If the writers intended that to happen, it would have been fine. But Smallville writer never gave me a feeling that character developments were planned ahead.

That gives the actors a hard time coping with the sudden flip flops of their characters. And ultimately, makes it harder to judge the actors performance as a whole. Instead, you really have to deal with it one episode at a time.

And frankly, if you are written as a emo BDA, the playing the part is good acting, not wooden.

Tom demonstrated that emo BDA and moody teenager aren't the only thing he could play in this episode. And I think that deserves to be recognized.

[Vala]

Originally posted by ClareKent
I found Tom's acting quite diferent, but I really don't know if I liked it or not, just different. The one's I did enjoy were Michael's and Erica's, they did a great job with all those emotional scenes. agree

[83kaL]

People who ever said Mr. TW is wooden, got it in the fast this episode! He was so great, anyways people that don't like him is because they don't like the show!

Plus! I loved Michael in this episode, more and more Lex-ish.

And I personally didn't like AM in the elevator scene, I prefered AA...

[Mello Penelo]

Originally posted by chlark fan
*sarcasm* Mello Penelo is just giving her damn opinion and she does not have to have tact. */sarcasm*

Yeah, I know. Your opinion is more important than mine. And is the only one anyone should listen to.


Originally posted by 83kaL
anyways people that don't like him is because they don't like the show!

Go watch the movies he's in. They're laughably bad.

[Theshadow129x]

lmao . when I saw Cheaper by the dozen part 1 i laughed when he told his dad he was leaving home after high school because all i could think about was him being Clark Kent and then i saw the fog and all i could do was laugh because all i thought of was smallville. its hard to tell if he's playing a character or just himself.

[FiReFTW]

Originally posted by chlark fan
*sarcasm* Mello Penelo is just giving her damn opinion and she does not have to have tact. */sarcasm*

Calling someone ugly is not a opinion , its a insult , oh wait .. I forgot most people that post here are 14 years old .. its okay

[chantal]

Originally posted by Mello Penelo

Schneider was pretty decent in Annie Get Your Gun, too.

John Glover doesn't even have much exposure in Hollywood. He's done a few films which are good, but he's more of a Broadway actor, which is a very different acting style. It translates decently on the screen, but after seeing him in The Producers, he blew me away as so much more than an average Hollywood actor. His true depth and projection cannot be conveyed on a camera.


Tom Wopat was in Annie Get Your Gun. When (or where) did Schneider appear in it? Per Playbill:

"John Schneider made his Broadway debut in Grand Hotel, and his other theatrical credits include productions of The Will Rogers Follies, Brigadoon, The Music Man, The Civil War, and Mame."

When (and where) was John Glover in The Producers? He wasn't in either movie, and he didn't appear in it on Broadway (according to IMDB and IBDB). Do you mean The Drowsy Chaperone? That's the only musical he has ever done. On Broadway, anyway. He was in the Hans Christian Anderson play.

[SVfan4ever]

IMO Tom did some awesome acting this episode.

[chantal]

Originally posted by hansioux

When John Glover guest starred and played a bad guy in DS9, he wasn't half as captivating as he is as Lionel. Because it was not a very well written DS9 script. Had he gotten the role as someone else, perhaps Dukat (which I think Glover is the only other guy who can pull that character off), then he would have a great range of avenues to show off his craft.


I thought he was great in DS9. He played what was essentially a dual role, Verad and Verad Dax, and he made them totally distinct. As he did in the roles of twins John and James Jekyll in "Love, Valour, Compassion," which was his Tony winning role(s).

[chlark fan]

Originally posted by FiReFTW
Calling someone ugly is not a opinion , its a insult , oh wait .. I forgot most people that post here are 14 years old .. its okay


FiReFTW, those *sarcasm* quotes around my statement were to indicate that I was being sarcastic. I totally agree w/ your post about Robin Williams. I was just quoting what Melo Penelo said to me in an earlier post.

[smallvillian141]

Tom was awesome it this episode!! and so was AM!

[lilkoolmaria]

I think Tom did an awesome job. I could tell it wasn't Clark, since his portrayal was slightly different.

And I'm not sure if I was just hearing things, but did anyone else think his voice was a tiny bit computerized like it was in "Bizarro"? It didn't seem as soft as usual.

[MidgardDragon]

Originally posted by hookem91
mello penelo it seems you really dislike this show...so why do you watch it?

From what I can discern of her postings it is solely so she can come here and bash it.

[hansioux]

Originally posted by chantal
I thought he was great in DS9. He played what was essentially a dual role, Verad and Verad Dax, and he made them totally distinct. As he did in the roles of twins John and James Jekyll in "Love, Valour, Compassion," which was his Tony winning role(s).

in my opinion, that was among one of the most forgettable episodes of DS9.

Verad and Verad Dax's difference was "drastic" and frankly I think it was easier to do. One is shaky, irritated and one is completely over confident.

Where as TW's second Bizzaro/Clark piece was subtle yet still clear to see. You can feel the Clark completely transformed, yet it wasn't out of character (talking about TW's craft of handling his facial expressions, speech, not the plot). Which I feel is a much more difficult job.

There are plenty of "role switch" works. Who can forget Face Off. But in this case the change was also drastic. But in Face Off, the actors needed to be two completely different characters. Instead of Glover's Verad, which is 1 character with a different attitude (more like Red), or TW's Bizzaro, one character posing as the another around the closest friends of the his pretend identity.

[FiReFTW]

Originally posted by chlark fan
FiReFTW, those *sarcasm* quotes around my statement were to indicate that I was being sarcastic. I totally agree w/ your post about Robin Williams. I was just quoting what Melo Penelo said to me in an earlier post.


Sorry I didn't notice the *sarcasm* , I was just stunned by your reply soo much that I somehow didn't see that :o ;)

[freefall]

TW did a fantastic job playing Bizarro, he played it just subtle enough to be believable as the real Clark, and yet still managed to convey to to this viewer that there's something way off with his character.

He had also managed to gave a much stronger, decisive and a totally focused air for Bizarro's character throughout the episode, which is very different from Clark's usual mopey demeanor.

TW has really grown as an actor, back then he's just a pretty face to me. Episodes like Gemini, Splinter, Transference, Labyrinth and Vengeance are perfect examples to show just how much range he has.

[Titan27]

OK Mello Penelo. To clarify what I meant by Clark training himself w/ Jor-El after high school in the comics. I meant was Clark was training himself by traveling the world and fighting criminals & people in dangerous situations such as earthquakes, rock slides, just helping one person at a time after high school like you said. Clark never trained with Jor-El to the extent like the movies or perhaps Smallville portray. And yes it was w/o a suit. He did all this in regular clothing and was referred to by the people he saved as "superboy." It was Jonathan & Martha who made his suit; since Jonathan didn't die in the comics. In fact Jor-El never created the FOS in the comics. It was created by The Eradicator. Afterwards Clark/Superman only inhabited the FOS. All of the items filling the Fortress were gathered from the otherworldly dimension known as the Phantom Zone. Artifacts present included various holographic imagery and histories of Krypton along with physical artifacts such as the Fortress Robots, Kryptonian Battlesuits, and the statue of Jor-El and Lara holding Krypton aloft in their hands. In the comics he loathed going to the FOS, he only went there when he had to. BTW: The Eradicator's basic program (designed by an ancestor of Kal-El's named Kem-El) necessitated the change of Superman into the ideal Kryptonian and eventually to reform Earth into a physical duplicate of Krypton. Which is why I think the writers really screwed up by making James Marster's character Brainiac. They should have made it The Eradicator, and used that as the AI that Zod reprogrammed; which would explain why all the Zod disciples want to remake Earth into new Krypton, same with Zor-El for Smallville even though in the comic books he was not evil.

I know you already know all of this since you are a comic book geek. Most people haven't read the Superman comics on these threads so I never like to go into great detail since it can get complicated; but since your profile says you are well informed on the issue. I figured I should better explain myself; so you don't have to apologize for "correcting" my information.

[redeem147]

Robin Williams isn't ugly. In fact, I find him more attractive than Tom. I just thought Tom did a good job.

For someone who wants to see Kristin in something different, I recommend Partition.

Oh, and Titan, I think you might add 'in the post- 1986 continuity of the comics'.

[hansioux]

Originally posted by Titan27
since Jonathan didn't die in the comics.

I thought Johnathan died in some comics, and both of them died in others. Maybe they just didn't die in the Superboy comics and some of the later comics.

[wrinkles]

Hmm, how to put this.

I think TW has grown as an actor and is entertaining and often enjoyable to watch.

But I feel he has been a bit off this season. Largely due to the change of roles the scripts have required - it's a jump to be the "parent/guidance" role like with Kara. The relationship with Lana is also very up and down.... it's hard to play eithe r over happy or over suspiscious when the plot isn't going either way. The result I feel is flat and very emotionally hollow.

Perhaps they're aiming for understated, but I dunna like it. Even if it was teenage angst, I do miss the passionate highs and lows of the high school years.

[smallviluva]

he also looked different in this episode, i dont know if it was the way his hair was or something, but he looked different. but yea great acting. and it soo scary to think what will happen with the real clana, when bizarro and evil lana a doing better than the other way round.

[chlark fan]

It goes to show us just how dark Lana is becoming if her and Bizarro Clark are the perfect couple. :eek:

And yes Tom's hair was different in this episode....a little less groomed and more wild (like Bizarro)

[Kal26]

Originally posted by hansioux
I thought Johnathan died in some comics, and both of them died in others. Maybe they just didn't die in the Superboy comics and some of the later comics.

Yes, it depends on the comics your reading. In some he dies, in some he doesn't.

[Titan27]

There were like 2 or 4 different "universes" of Superman comic lines that had different stories and scenarios for the minor characters. In some he died; and some he didn't He didn't die in the Superman comics from 1980's to 2000's. And I wasn't born before then so my information is limited to that period of comics available. Most people just separate the comics into the "Classic Pre-Crisis comics" and "classic Post-Crisis comics. These include the comics released from the 1930's to 1940's which are called The Golden Age. The comics released during the 1950's to 1980's are called The Silver Age. Anyways to reaffirm what most have you already said:

Before John Byrne's 1986 reboot of the Superman series, Jonathan Kent died shortly after Clark's high school graduation; in the current comics' continuity, they are alive when Clark is an adult and remain important supporting characters to this day.

[redeem147]

When I was a kid (in the dark ages) his parents were both alive in Superboy (though in later issues they were exposed to an alien virus or something that made them younger than the original white-haired ma and pa. In Superman comics they were both dead.

[Atomic girl]

Wow, I never thought I'd write this kind of post...

First off I am not a Tom Welling fan, but a fan of Smallville. Not that I have anything against any of the actors, they are a big reason I like it. TW's acting in Gemini was pretty good, and that was the reason to watch because frankly I didn't care for the story much....

As far as TW acting in CBTD 1 &2, he was hired to play a whiny teenager having trouble with the move away from "home". He did so well. I bought the movie (1st only) because I loved the family interaction and certainly TW is part of that. I didn't care for the 2nd one so I didn't buy that one. TW pretty much played the same part in both, but the overall story the first time was more entertaining.

In the Fog, you are dealing with a remake that wasn't as "scary" as the first. The writing wasn't to my taste, but for acting both Tom Welling and Maggy Grace did fine.

I think time will tell whether any of the Smallville actors will make it big after SV. Right now it takes almost all their time, and even if they wanted to commit to something more dramatic for the big screen, they are committed to SV. I think when we finally see TW do work on the big screen where he gets to star in a movie with good writing, we'll see how good he really can be. Most of the directors that have worked with him have spoken highly of him. I can only think of one exception.

I think of so many actors that I like to see on the big screen that started off on TV and know that you can't always tell by where an actor starts where they'll end up....Johnny Depp (21 Jump Street), Tom Hanks (Bosum Buddies), Robin Williams (Mork and Mindy), Will Smith (Fresh Prince of Bel-Air) anyone?

[berniepooh]

I agree Tom Welling's acting in this epi was very good, but the script was amazing.

The writers deserve a lot of the credit for finally giving him material that he could get his teeth INTO!

[Welling_is_pretty]

I've always liked Tom's acting and felt that he was better than most people give him credit for. But Tom is never better than when he's playing other characters besides Clark. I'm thinking Kal, Bizarro, Clark on Red K, Lionel in Clark's body, etc. Tom is really good at playing 'evil' version of Clark (I think because, as he stated once, it's not something he usually gets to do and so he can really focus and let loose and bring new energy to it).

I think it's difficult for Tom to play this character because Clark has such limits. I mean, you can't go certain places with him because of the future (Superman) and because Clark Kent is such a role model and iconic character.

[Kal26]

I too have always thought Tom was a better actor than people gave him credit for. To me, the proof is in his ability to change mannerisms depending on what character he is playing. Like was said above clark, kal, clark on red k, bizarro, and lionel in clarks body, if you watch closely, you can see that they are all the same, but also drastically different. He changes everything, right down to the way he walks, stands, smiles, and the gestures he makes. It's clear that he takes acting very seriously, and puts a lot of effort into it.

[Welling_is_pretty]

Originally posted by Kal26
To me, the proof is in his ability to change mannerisms depending on what character he is playing.
Yes, exactly.
And it's the subtle nuances that make those changed mannerisms so great. It is especially noticable when he was playing Lionel in Transference. I still rank that as one of Tom's best. acting. performances. ever.

[Tallison]

I think he did a fantastic job...he always amazes me how he can change into different characters so smoothly.